


Markers

by Nanononu



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Declarations Of Love, M/M, Markers, Monochomat, SeokSoo, Short One Shot, Vandalism, alternative universe, colorblind
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-03-02 04:40:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23529310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nanononu/pseuds/Nanononu
Summary: Their story began with an abandoned building, a confession, and some messages exchanged with the use of markers.
Relationships: Hong Jisoo | Joshua/Lee Seokmin | DK
Comments: 4
Kudos: 32





	Markers

**Author's Note:**

> TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of accidents are found in the chapter.

Joshua was a cheerful and jolly kid. Growing up, he had come to like art. He loved drawings, pictures, paintings, calligraphy, he adored the blending colors that produced masterpieces. He used to have this little journal as a kid where he practiced watercolor painting that he still kept until present. He was the artsy kid in school that his fellow classmates and even the teachers liked. He lived in a colorful world in Los Angeles and he loved Autumn and Spring as he deemed it to be the most vibrant seasons.

As a kid, he'd secretly vandalize the desks whenever he got bored or just simply read what the others had already written on the wooden desks. He'd use colorful Sharpies to draw or write either in English or Korean. It was an unintentional habit he can't let go that easily as he always found it fascinating when the desks were filled with colorful drabbles, doodles, or just random writings. He even takes time to read stuff and sometimes write replies to those vandals, like that one time he read somewhere: **Fate may not work out how you wanted it, still, HOPE. It's just as powerful as LOVE.** And replied, **Fate is just as bad as Hope and Love actually... Hahaha!** snickering at the nonesense that he reads and writes 98% of the time.

Joshua was a cheerful and jolly kid. Growing up, he had come to like art. He loved drawings, pictures, paintings, calligraphy, he adored the blending colors that produced masterpieces. He used to have this little journal as a kid where he practiced watercolor painting that he still kept until present. He was the artsy kid in school that his fellow classmates and even the teachers liked.   
  


He lived in a colorful world in Los Angeles, but he took it for granted.

Little Joshua finally awoke as he was immediately greeted by the blinding light of the white room. After a few seconds of his vision adjusting, he was met with the crying faces of both his parents as they too were covered in bandages, a few stitches etched their faces. Both the parents were apologizing profusely as the doctors and nurses checked Joshua's condition.

Little Joshua didn't knew by then what was wrong, he still can't understand what he thought was medical jargon that was exchanged between his parents and the doctor. All he knew was that, the room had somehow looked very dull. Little Joshua was stuck in the hospital for months and was told to keep resting until he fully recovers. His parents took turns taking care of the bedridden boy as they tried to keep him away from boredom as much as possible.

Little Joshua had undergone therapy to see if there were signs of trauma from the little boy. His parents feared of losing their bubbly Joshua and tried their best to make Joshua feel better after the accident.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

The car swerved to the edge of the cliff as the truck suddenly turned from the blind curve, hitting the passenger side of the car. It was a devastating crash, the car fell off rolling along the steep cliff as both the adults in the front both had their heads hit by the shattered glass while the kid in the back seat got a severe concussion.

The moment help arrived, all three were already almost gone from too much blood loss but had managed to survive after being admitted to the hospital. Loads of stitches were needed to tend the adults’ wound while the child was stuck in a coma with low chances of waking up. 

Somehow, all three miraculously survived such an incident but the child was still a 50:50 case. His brain had been damaged due to the trauma and the kid's already anemic state wasn't helping in speeding up the recovery. The parents were scared to lose their only child, but they didn't lose hope.

Now, imagine the Hongs’ happiness when they finally saw their little boy open his eyes after several months of waiting, and was now close to his discharge.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Little Joshua only needed the last session with his therapist before he could finally be discharged. The Hongs’ were glad they can finally live their daily lives again, but the happiness was short lived when they unintentionally received bad news, not from the doctors, not from the therapist, but from Joshua himself.

While little Joshua was prepping to meet his therapist, he suddenly had a curious question that shocked his parents.

 _ **"Are we really wearing these gloomy colors today? We're finally going home! Shouldn't we wear clothes that are more happy than grays?"**_ Joshua asked but still put on his change of clothes. Mrs. Hong had to ask again just to make sure she wasn't hearing things wrong.

 _ **"I asked why we wear grays, whites, or black clothes, mom. It's always making the room dull."**_ Joshua said with such innocent eyes as his parents looked at each other then back to their child in shock and confusion.

Mr. Hong knelt down to his child's height and asked what color his clothes were and little Joshua replied with an honest, **_"White sweaters and gray pants!"_** Just as Joshua answered, his therapist knocked on the room's door.

Mrs. Hong went to open the door and was immediately greeted with, _**"Ma'am, there's something we need to talk about."**_ The two males then went to the door and met Mrs. Hong who was sobbing silent tears.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

It's been years since that accident happened and Joshua had moved to Korea to finish his studies and to relax in a new environment. He was still the cheerful and jolly person, but he just lost his color...

Figuratively and literally.

Cerebral Achromatopsia. Jisoo was diagnosed with Cerebral Achromatopsia after the accident. It is a rare type of color blindness that resulted from his severe head trauma. His once colorful world suddenly became monochromatic as he only saw the hues of black, white, and different gray shades making Jisoo give up the idea of pursuing fine arts as he slowly forgot how colors looked like.

Instead of loving the colors of spring and autumn, he was now attracted to the cold lonely winter. Instead of anticipating the colors in daylight, he learnt to love the darkness of the night. Some little things changed over time.

Jisoo just concentrated on his studies as his way of momentarily forgetting his condition. He kept his mind busy on things that weren't supposed to be in his career path, that was now what he took, Business Ad.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Jisoo was currently looking for a quiet place to read since the library wasn't really as quiet as you'd expect it to be. He had no schedule for the entire afternoon and he took it as a free time to study. He was walking through the small spaces at the back of each building as he deemed it to be his secret shortcut to one of his favorite quiet places, the abandoned building near the giant pine tree of the university.

The building was heavily blocked by hazard tapes in the front and on its sides, but had a small opening at the back. He usually goes there to read, sleep, compose, relax, or on his bored days, he'd be reading some of the vandalism written on the walls.

Jisoo dropped his bag at the spot where he usually sits down on most days. He liked the spot as it was quite an open space near a wall that had a functioning outlet, great access to cell service and to open air, just in front of a beautiful painted scenery on the wall, and it had the cleanest wall in the accessible area of the run down building.

Well... It "had" the cleanest wall until Jisoo found something new written to it in neat handwriting when he was about to sit down. What was written was just at his eye level, as if it was meant to be seen by him.

**_「I've been crushing on this person. I fell inlove at first sight, but this person is a complete stranger who I know nothing of. I'm scared that these feelings are just fooling me_** **_(ﾟ' －｀ﾟ)」_ **

Jisoo awed at the message and thought whoever wrote this was such a cutie. A smile crept on his face as he thought it'd be fun to do again what he used to do before, replying to vandals. He grabbed the first marker he found when he dug into his bag and wrote just under the said vandalism:

**_「Don't let your eyes be fixated on what you see, but instead on what you feel, for what we see is temporal but what we feel is eternal. (*' ︶ '*)」_ **

Jisoo wrote what his bible verse for today was and smiled to himself thinking how silly it was as if the writer would actually respond. He placed the marker back in his bag as he sat comfortably and started reading his book. It was getting late and Jisoo thought to go back to the school's dorms after reading the afternoon away.

A good week had passed just as quickly as yesterday and Jisoo was about to head to the school's dorms around 3pm. He was walking back from his class until he was in his secret shortcut and felt curious all of a sudden. He wondered if there was a reply from the original vandalist, so Jisoo wandered back to the abandoned building and immediately went to his spot.

There scribbled on the wall with the same hand writing was a reply,

**_「Wow! Thanks for the advice. ㅋㅋㅋ I didn't really think someone would read this vandal ^^. Anyway, what do you think? Should I confess to this person even though I'm a complete stranger?」_ **

Surprised to actually see a reply, Jisoo thought for a moment before grabbing a random marker from his bag and writing below the other's vandal, **_「I think you should go for it! I mean, there's no harm in trying, right? Although, if the person doesn't like you back, it might be a bit embarrassing_** ** _｡ﾟ(ﾟ'ω'ﾟ)ﾟ｡」_** He closed the marker's cap and shoved it inside his bag before hurrying home since he had so much work to do at home.

No matter how much Jisoo drowned himself in homework for the entire two days of his weekend, the thought of the new found vandal buddy and the said buddy's love trouble always lifted his mood everytime it crossed his mind. It was as if Jisoo was their love counselor but instead of it being face to face, it was on an abandoned building's walls. Jisoo would smile ever so often at the thought even during his classes that he was eager to end quickly so he could check if there was a reply.

The moment the class ended, Jisoo almost bolted out the classroom to his secret shortcut heading towards the abandoned building. And there he was, panting and smiling at the new message on the wall. He tried to look around for any sign of another person being there with him but there was none. He sighed, _'No luck today, I guess.'_ He thought and read the reply.

_**「You're right again, thanks! For sure, I'll confess when we meet again, though I still hadn't seen that person after that one fine day, but I will confess sooner or later ㅋㅋㅋ. Anyway, I'm Seokmin! Everyone calls me Minnie though. What's yours?」**_ The message read making Jisoo smile and get a marker from his bag.

**_「Are we close??? ㅋㅋㅋ jk. I'm Jisoo btw! I hope you can confess soon or else that person will get snatched away from you lol. Good luck!」_ **

Jisoo wrote and left the place with a smile on his face. The exchange really brought some positive vibes to Jisoo's normally "boring" days. Everyday, Jisoo had something to look forward to. Jisoo can't help himself to wait for days, so he decided to check if there was a reply first thing in the morning before his first class starts.  
  


The next morning, Jisoo was already at the abandoned building by 8 am, just an hour before his first class starts. As if it was his routine, he checked his surroundings trying to catch if someone else was there, but as usual, it was just him and the tranquil area.

Jisoo's face brightens at the sight of another reply, he grabs a marker from his bag before actually reading what was written.

_**「Jisoo! That's a really cute name! It really matches your cute penmanship too! ^^」** _

Jisoo felt his heart skip a beat as his face flushed a soft hue of red. A small and soft chuckle escaped his lips as he thought how the person he kept "talking" to was pleasing and trustworthy, maybe a bit of a gentle nature and quite funny at times, or even a bit too trusting to his advices. Who knew that the mystery person would actually make Jisoo realize how good he was at reading others' personalities. Even though Jisoo only sees in a monochrome scale, Jisoo could clearly tell that Seokmin's personality was too bright and "colorful".

Jisoo slowly and unknowingly liked Seokmin. As their "conversation" continued, they both got to know each other more, even to the point of sharing embarrassing stories, secrets, and jokes. It was as if the two were actually there just conversing. But, no matter how much they kept conversing three times a day, daily, they still hadn't met each other.

However, Jisoo was happy with the setting. He felt serenity whenever the two get to exchange replies that almost already filled up that entire– once clean wall. He didn't mind how they never met even once in that building. In fact, the friendship that bloomed out of blind trust was what Jisoo found comforting. For him, it was a special connection between them, it's not always that you can find a friend in the most bizarre ways possible.

Jisoo's heart was filled with content, but that feeling did not last long as his contentment was challenged with one question from Seokmin.

_**「Hey Jisoo, can we meet up? I really want to know you better and see you in person ^^ (Also, I didn't mention this before but... You really have a unique sense of fashion when it comes to your markers. It's weirdly colorful! In a good way (^ㅅ^;))」** _

Jisoo's breath hitched, he then realized that he really haven't had a chance to tell Seokmin that he was in fact color blind or maybe the fact that he did try to tell him but was afraid of Seokmin's disappointment. However, he dismissed the thought and focused more on the fact that Seokmin wanted to meet up with him. This was a chance to level up their friendship, Jisoo thought before writing back,

_**「Sure! ^^」** _

Two days later on a friday afternoon, Jisoo saw Seokmin's reply.

**_「Yay! We can finally see each other! lol. Okay, how about we meet tomorrow 10am at the central park, near the bridge of the pond with the huge lily pads, just next to the giant fountain. To make it easier, just look for a skinny guy with blue hair that has an undercut wearing a dark blue shirt and light brown pants lol. I'll be a total blueberry （＾∇＾）for sure, you'll easily spot me. See ya there!_ **

****

**_P.S. Don't come back here anymore, the planned demolition of this building starts tomorrow and I barely managed to get back here lol. It's dangerous if you'd be here. Plus, we'll be meeting anyway! We can finally move on from being vandalist buddies to actually buddies irl. Lol. This will be my last vandalism here..._ **

****

**_I can't wait to see you, Jisoo ^^❤︎」_ **

Jisoo suddenly felt bittersweet. Sure, he was happy that they're finally able to meet, but he can't help but feel a little sad that the memories they made through vandalizing this abandoned building will not last, will crumble, or may even be lost in a pile of rubble by tomorrow, but he had to remind himself that it's really not a bad thing since they'll finally meet each other and create new ones.

Saturday finally arrived, and to say that Jisoo was nervous is an understatement since the boy got too worked up and excited that he actually slept in and woke up late, resulting to him being at the central park a little later than planned. It was now 10:27 in the morning and the park was packed more than usual since the nice day forecasted was a great time for picnics. He sighed and playfully rolled his eyes at the thought of having to find Seokmin in the crowd, but relaxed shortly after.

 _Well atleast I can be sure that Seokmin's already here by being a little late. Plus, he told me a description of what he looks like. Blue undercut, blue shirt and light brown pants..._ Jisoo's thoughts trailed off after listing how to find Seokmin.

At that moment, Jisoo really wanted to smack himself in the head so hard. He was being way too nervous and excited that he forgot the most crucial part. HE IS COLOR BLIND! How the heck was he supposed to remember what blue and brown looked like when he only sees in black, white, and grays?

Jisoo exasperatedly ran his hands through his hair and let out a groany sigh. He tried looking around the area trying to focus as if forcing himself to see the colors to no avail. He tried a process of elimination based on descriptions like being skinny, having an undercut hairstyle, looking like a teenager in a T-shirt and pants, but still, there were too many people left if he ends up asking individually.

This was the time Jisoo cursed his inability to see colors. He felt that it really hindered him to do the things he wanted. Jisoo never felt so defeated after a long time of being in his state. He sighed once more, thinking that there's really nothing he can do. So, despite his mind's protests, his body moved itself to walk away from the park and head to the school's dorms.

The moment Jisoo arrived at his room, he slept out of sheer annoyance and disappointment of himself. He really didn't want to leave Seokmin waiting out there, but what can he do? He kept cursing his disability and blaming himself. He even thought how he wouldn't be surprised if Seokmin hated him for standing him up.

Jisoo only woke up when his body protested for the lack of food. He then, only realized that he hasn't really eaten for the entire day if we consider that one buttered toast for breakfast doesn't count as food. He got up from bed and ate at the dorm's cafeteria, overhearing some dorm mates talk about the demolition of the abandoned building near the university's signature pine tree.

 _'Oh, right. That was supposed to be today.'_ Jisoo thought as he took the last spoonful of rice. Jisoo was really lifeless the entire time and really wasn't paying attention to anything until his body took him to the pine tree near the once standing abandoned building.

The workers were already off their shift and security was really lax at that time, so Jisoo just headed towards the huge pile of rubble on that area. He didn't mind the possible danger he put himself by trespassing the area, he just let his body do all the work.

The light of the full moon amplified Jisoo's adapted nocturnal ability to see better at the dark due to his lack of ability to see colors. This ability was one of the few ones Jisoo actually found useful at times; especially right now.

Jisoo headed towards that one big area where he thought was where the wall they vandalized crumbled. He was digging through the rubble as if looking for something, just a small bit, a memento per sé of the vandalism they had done. He hoped for the first time in a long while.

He tried to be as silent as possible, but to his surprise, there was also someone else that was doing the same thing as he was just a little further from where Jisoo was crouching. The other person flipped some rubble, the light from their phone helping them see through the dark night.

The other person looked slim but definitely held some muscle, heck Jisoo was even threatened by their thighs alone. His height was something Jisoo estimates to be a bit taller than him, and when Jisoo tried to see the features of that person's face, all he can get was their sharp jawline and nose.

Jisoo suddenly felt nervous when his thoughts of "what ifs" crossed his mind. He really didn't want to get in trouble. Jisoo slowly and silently tried to escape, but his foot landed on a small rubble that ricocheted from his shoes to the other rubble in the surrounding making the other person shine their light source to Jisoo's direction.

In defense, Jisoo covered his eyes and called out, _**"Don't you dare come closer, unless you want to be hit!"**_ but his threat didn't really seem to work as the other person took small steps towards his direction.

Threatened, Jisoo quickly grabbed the nearest piece of rubble he can carry but got distracted when he saw the characters written on the rubble, _ **「Minnie」**_.

 ** _"The vandal! So there's still some pieces left from the wall here! How nostalgic..."_** Jisoo's momentary happiness got cut off when the other person asked, **_"How do you know there's a vandalized wall in this area?"_** The other's voice sounded calm but had a sense of authority from Jisoo's point of view.

Jisoo had to think twice, the other person might report him if he says he made it, vandalism was a sub major offense and he didn't really want that to taint his records. To his dismay, his mouth just run off on its own before he can think about it. _**"Duh, I'm the one who did it."**_ He wanted to smack himself to shut up.

Before Jisoo could do anything else, the other person tugged on his right arm and pulled him into a hug. _**"Hey! What the heck! Let me go! I will shout if you don't!"**_ Jisoo struggled in the arms of the "strange" person.

Jisoo then heard a sigh followed by a soft low chuckle. _**"I knew you'd miss our vandalism. That's why you're here, right Jisoo?"**_ Jisoo froze for a moment as the gears in his head finally clicked. He was still in the person's embrace as he slowly replied with a stutter, **_"S-Seokmin?"_**

Jisoo felt the other person tighten the hug as if not wanting to let Jisoo slip away. **_"Yes, it's me Jisoo. Did you know I've been waiting for hours just to meet with you? I thought I'd never see you since you didn't go, so I decided to come here. Fate really is something, I never imagined seeing you here. I feel like the luckiest and happiest person in the universe."_** Seokmin happily said making Jisoo blush furiously as he thought Seokmin was exaggerating.

Jisoo can't help but smile as he heard Seokmin's heavenly voice and also having a whiff of his cologne, Jisoo was stunned. He then realized how he made Seokmin wait too long and immediately felt guilty. _**"Aren't you upset? Disappointed with me?"**_ Jisoo asked in a sad tone.

Seokmin broke the hug as both their eyes adjusted in the dark. The taller male gazed into Jisoo's eyes and warmly smiled before answering back, _**"I could never be mad let alone be disappointed in you Jisoo."**_ The words made Jisoo relax but still managed to keep him blushing and his heart racing in his chest.

The two got out of the area and sat on the benches under the giant pine tree to talk things out. Jisoo explained his side of the story. While explaining, Jisoo couldn't help but feel scared to be rejected or to disappoint Seokmin as he was a monochromat color blind.

But, his worries were thrown out the window when Seokmin replied with his most enthusiastic and happy tone,

 ** _"Woah! Awesome! You're eyes are cool! Plus you have night vision! Wow, you should've told me earlier!"_** Seokmin showed Jisoo a big and warm smile, his eyes curving and almost closed as he awed at the shocked Jisoo.

Jisoo felt warm and happy as Seokmin complimented him. Jisoo was right about Seokmin being a good person. Heck, Jisoo even felt like Seokmin was a godsend because no one could be that perfect, right? Well, for him Seokmin was.

It was already way past midnight as the two kept conversing with each other, sharing laughs and giggles every now and then. Jisoo didn't mind how he was also way past curfew, or how birds are starting to chirp, or maybe how disheveled he must've looked at that moment, the only thing in his mind was Seokmin.

_**"Jisoo?"**_ Seokmin asked while Jisoo hummed in reply. _**"Do you still remember that person I told you about? The one I fell in love with?"**_ Seokmin continued to ask. Jisoo suddenly beamed at the memory and with great enthusiasm replied, _**"Of course! That's the reason we started talking right?"**_ Jisoo chuckled making Seokmin do the same. _**"So, how was it? Did you finally know the name? Do you still love that person? Did you two finally meet again?"**_ Jisoo continued to bombard Seokmin with questions while still smiling widely at the topic.

Seokmin took a deep breath before replying, _**"Good thing you remembered. And yes, I'm still in love with that person, in fact, I'm falling even harder. I probably can't live without that person by now. We also met again, and I finally got the name."**_ Seokmin said with a warm smile as he gazed at Jisoo with eyes twinkling under the bright moon.

 _ **"That's great! I'm happy for you! Have you talked it out? Did you finally get to know each other?"**_ Jisoo cheered and even teased the other male before asking, locking eyes with Seokmin as the latter felt his cheeks redden. _**"Yes, we finally got to know each other."**_ Seokmin replied.

Jisoo, despite being happy for his friend, felt a little tug in his chest when he saw Seokmin so smitten to the person of topic. He can't help but feel a little jealous, especially when Seokmin was literally one, if not, the best person out there.

_**"So what's their name?"**_ Jisoo wanted to know, maybe out of curiosity, or maybe out of jealousy, or maybe because he wanted to know who to throw hands at when they break Seokmin's pure and loving heart. Jisoo was searching Seokmin's eyes curiously and expectantly for an answer but the latter just laughed.

Jisoo was left confused as Seokmin stood up and looked up the sky. Seokmin's laughter died down as Jisoo thought that maybe Seokmin was done for the night, but Jisoo's trail of thought got cut as Seokmin asked a question,

 _ **"Do you remember when I said that I'll confess the moment we see each other again?"**_ Seokmin was still looking up the sky as he waited for Jisoo's reply. _**"Of course! So, did you do it? Did you finally confess?"**_ Jisoo asked in reply as Seokmin slowly knelt infront of the sitting Jisoo, taking ahold of his hands with a lovestruck smile as if he was proposing.

_**"I'm still about to..."**_ Seokmin stated and locked eyes with Jisoo.

It took a moment for Jisoo to comprehend what was happening. It felt surreal, Jisoo couldn't believe it was happening. He felt his heartbeat race as blood flowed to make his cheeks warm up. _**"The person I fell in love with was you, Jisoo."**_ Seokmin added making Jisoo almost faint at the spot.

Jisoo fell for Seokmin way before and now that Seokmin was confessing in front of him just made Jisoo fall even more. But, this information and feeling was too much for Jisoo to take in all at once. He had to make sure what he was hearing was true. _**"That can't be..."** _Jisoo trailed off in utter shock making Seokmin chuckle.

 _ **"I couldn't believe it either, but I'm telling the truth. Fate really did an amazing job! Who knew, right? The person I was secretly vandalizing with was actually the one I was looking for the entire time! Fate did wonders tying us together. The moment you replied to my vandal was the moment our love story began. In fact, I was falling for you in between our secret exchanges and I was worried of what I felt towards the one I fell for and for you, but when I finally got a clear look at your face and knew that you were the one I was vandalizing with, I felt like my heart dropped out of happiness."**_ Seokmin told Jisoo with his happiest tone and with great enthusiasm makin Jisoo feel the warmth and love just by being in front of the man.

 _ **"That's why starting now, I'll never let you go. I'll definitely make you fall in love with me, Jisoo."**_ Seokmin declared with determination and confidence, but little did he know that Jisoo was already long in love with him.

_**"I love you, Jisoo"**_ Seokmin confessed and kissed the back of Jisoo's right hand.

\- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Hong Jisoo is a cheerful and jolly person who grew up to like art and loved drawings, pictures, paintings, calligraphy, and vandalism. Though he may be color blind, he still lived a wonderful life in Korea, as he found a special someone that brought color to his "dull" world. Fate really did not work out how he wanted it, but he found someone that made him realize that his little hope brought him to his new found love.

**Author's Note:**

> This was based on a Vandalism Love Story by Sejuru.
> 
> Sorry for any errors ㅠㅠ


End file.
